Container



United States Patent Ofifice 3,024,960 Patented Mar. 13, 1962 3,024,960 CONTAINER Morris W. Kuchenbecker, Neenah, Wis., assignor to American Can Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Nov. 16, 1959, Ser. No. 853,141 3 Claims. (Cl. 22937) The present invention relates to a fibre carton or container for the packaging of relatively heavy products such as liquids and has particular reference to a novel fold-in bottom closure for such a carton or container.

The object of the invention is to provide a fold-in bottom closure in which the bottom members are formed in such a manner as to produce a double thickness bottom wall uniformly distributed over a major portion of the container bottom to uniformly support the contents of the container.

Another object is to provide such a bottom closure in which the members of the closure are integral and hingedly connected to each other to produce liquid tight corner joints.

Another object is to provide such a bottom closure in which the members of the closure may be readily and quickly folded into bottom forming position.

\ Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent as it is better understood from the "following description, which, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, discloses a preferred embodimerit thereof.

Referring to the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an inverted container showing a bottom end closure embodying the instant invention, parts being broken away;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the outer face of the bottom portion of a flat blank from which the bottom closure in FIG. 1 is made;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an inverted container showing the bottom members prior to formation of the container body, parts being broken away;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 showing the bottom members in partially folded-in position;

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the inner face of the completed bottom closure of the carton; and

FIGS. 6 and 7 are enlarged sectional views taken sub stantially along the lines 6-6, 7-7 in FIG. 5.

As a preferred and exemplary embodiment of the instant invention the drawings illustrate a bottom closure 11 (FIG. 1) for a substantially rectangular fibre container body 12 suitably liquid-proofed to produce a container for the packaging of milk, juices and the like products. The container body 12 and its bottom closure 11 preferably are made from a single paper board blank 14, the lower portion of which is shown in FIG. 2.

The blank 14 (FIG. 2) is suitably scored or creased to divide it into four body side walls 16, 17, 18, 19 respectively separated from each other and hingedly connected together along crease lines 21, 22, 23. A glue flap or side seam marginal edge portion 25 is hingedly connected along the side seam edge of wall 19 by a crease line 26. The flap 25 is divided by a crease line 27 into glue flap portions 28, 29.

The bottom closure 11 for the container body 12 comprises a pair of outer closure panels 31, 32 and a pair of inner closure panels 33, 34. These panels are hingedly connected to the respective body side walls 16, 18, 17, 19 along hinge crease lines 36, 37, 38, 39 respectively.

The outer closure panel 31 is slightly longer than the outer closure panel 32 to provide for subsequent overlapping relation as will be hereinafter explained.

The inner closure panels 33, 34, are each divided by diagonal crease lines 41, 42 into a triangular panel section 43 hinged to the body side walls 17, 19 along the crease lines 38, 39 and a pair of triangular wing sections 44, 45 diagonally hinged to the triangular panel section 43. In the inner closure panel 33, the triangular wing sections 44, 45 are hinged to the adjacent outer closure panels 31, 32 respectively along the respective wall crease lines 21, 22. In the inner closure panel 34, the triangular wing sections 44, 45 are hinged to the adjacent outer closure panel 32 along wall crease line 23 and to the glue flap portion 29 along flap crease line 26.

Each of the triangular panel sections 43 of the inner closure panels 33, 34 are divided by cut lines 47, 48 to provide a pair of loose triangular wing extensions 51, 52 which are integral with the respective wing sections 44, 45 along their diagonal crease lines 41, 42 respectively. The wing extensions 51, 52 in each panel section 43 are separated by a narrow bridge portion 54 of the panel section 43.

T 0 form the bottom closure 11, the blank 14 is first folded along the side wall crease lines 21, 22, 23, 26 to produce the rectangular body 12 as best shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the four side Walls 16, 17, 18, 19, being tied together by the glue flap 25 which is bonded by a suitable adhesive to the inner face of the side wall 16 along its free edge.

The bottom outer and inner closure panels are then folded into place. This is effected by exerting an inward pressure against the inner closure panels 33, 34 as shown in FIG. 4. This pressure action hinges the triangular panel sections 43 inwardly along their respective crease lines 38, 39 and simultaneously hinges their adjacent triangular wing sections 44, 45 along the diagonal crease lines 41, 42 and along the crease lines 21, 22, 23, 26, separating the wing sections from the outer closure panels 31, 32 and the glue flap portion 29.

The hinging of the Wing section 44, 45 along the diagonal crease lines 41, 42, however, takes place only at the extremities of the lines, i.e., beyond the wing extensions 51, 52 thereby leaving the crease lines 41, 42 immediately adjacent the wing extensions 51, 52 unbent. Thus the wing extensions remain as substantially rigid extensions of the wing sections 44, 45. As a result of this rigid structure, the wing extensions 51, 52 hinge inwardly with and as integral parts of the wing sections 44, 45 thereby leaving openings along both sides of the bridge portions 54 in the triangular panel sections 43 as shown in FIG. 4.

As the triangular panel sections 43 and the triangular wing sections 44, 45 with their wing extensions 51, 52 move inwardly, the wing sections 44, 45 draw the outer closure panels 31, 32 downwardly over the inner closure panels 33, 34 until they are in a flat overlapping relation, with the outer closure panel 31 overlapping the outer closure panel 32 as shown in FIGS. 1, 6 and 7. In this relation, the wing sections 44, 45 and their wing extensions 51, 52 lie fiat against the inner faces of the outer closure panels 31, 32 and are adhesively bonded to them as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. Similarly the bridge por tions 54 overlie and are adhesively bonded to the Wing sections 44, 45 and the overlapped portions of the outer closure panels 31, 32 are adhesively bonded together.

As a result of this folding action the four triangular wing sections 44, 45 and their rigid triangular wing extensions 51, 52 in the two triangular panel sections 43, are pread out in clover leaf fashion over the bottom of the container body as best shown in FIG. 5. In this position the triangular wing extensions 51, 52 cover a major portion of the bottom of the container body and thereby provide over this major portion a uniformly distributed double thickness bottom which carries the major portion of the weight of the container contents. In a fold-in bottom construction where all of the closure panels are integral with each other and of substantial area, this uniform distribution of the bottom material provides a strong bottom in the container and permits the supporting of heavy substances such as liquids.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the form hereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

I claim:

1. A fold-in bottom end closure for a self-sustaining tubular container having a body portion defined by four substantially rectangular side walls, said bottom end closure comprising a pair of outer closure panels extending from a pair of oppositely disposed side Walls, said outer closure panels having their free marginal edge portions disposed in overlapping relation and adhesively secured together, a pair of inner closure panels extending from the remaining pair of oppositely disposed side walls, said inner closure panels being integral with said outer closure panels and being folded under said outer closure panels, said inner closure panels each having a pair of diagonal crease lines setting ofl? in each of said inner panels a triangular panel section and a pair of adjacent triangular wing sections, said triangular wing sections being disposed between said triangular panel sections and said outer closure panels and being adhesively secured to the inner faces of said outer closure panels, and a rigid Wing extension formed integrally with and disposed in coplanar relation to one of said triangular wing sections of each of said triangular panel sections and struck out from said triangular panel sections, said rigid wing extensions engaging flatly against and being adhesively secured to the inner faces of said outer closure panels, said triangular wing sections and said rigid wing extensions together providing a bottom structure of at least double thickness over a major portion of the bottom area of said container.

2. A fold-in bottom end closure of the character defined in claim 1 wherein each of said triangular wing sections is provided with a rigid integral wing extension struck out from one of said triangular panel sections.

3. A fold-in bottom end closure of the character defined in claim 2 wherein said triangular panel sections are each provided with a bridge portion disposed between the wing extensions of each triangular panel section, said bridge portions being adhesively secured to said triangular wing sections.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,321,139 Gruger June 8, 1943 2,390,909 Zinn Dec. 11, 1945 2,764,335 Kleingers Sept. 25, 1956 2,769,589 Moore Nov. 6, 1956 

